The official "Star Wars" website has posted a great interview with Creature Shop Supervisor Dave Elsey on creating the makeup effects for Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith.

He talks about the Anakin Skywalker to Darth Vader transformation, the look of the emperor in the final prequel, and the new Wookiee design for the film. Here's a clip;

"We're also recreating a lot of characters from the earlier movies, such as the Emperor and of course, we show how Anakin Skywalker becomes Darth Vader," says Elsey.

Transforming a handsome actor like Hayden Christensen into a gruesomely tragic Darth Vader isn't easy, and Elsey had his hands full trying to create a ravaged Sith Lord fans have only seen glimpses of sans-helmet.

"At the end of Return of the Jedi, when his helmet comes off and we see what he looks like, we've had to kind of do the earlier version of that and we've had to really research that," Elsey explains.